


Moss Overgrown

by s0vereign



Series: Anthology of Ambles [3]
Category: Dark Souls (Video Games)
Genre: Gen, mild body horror
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-29
Updated: 2017-10-29
Packaged: 2019-01-26 07:41:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 554
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12552536
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/s0vereign/pseuds/s0vereign
Summary: A sketch about a tired knight finding rest during the Age of Dark. Edited and reposted from Tumblr.





	Moss Overgrown

When the First Flame was finally extinguished, Antares suddenly felt an incredible exhaustion and weariness. Relief, yes, they also felt deep in their bones. Everyone they knew now were rejoicing the long overdue end of the Age of Gods. The new Lord of Hollows was even planning to hold celebrations with the help of the Sable Church. But quite honestly, the knight just wanted to go to sleep. They had already wandered throughout Lordran- no, Lothric, they always kept forgetting -for centuries. Enough was enough. 

Perhaps it was time to return to their roots, so to speak. Not to Astora, for the knight’s parents were no doubt long gone, but instead to Farron Keep where the Darkroot Garden had once been ages ago. Graves of old friends were all Antares really had from Lordran’s time there. They were reminders of the peaceful woodland before it had been consumed by the noxious swamp.

Once they returned to Farron Keep, the knight found a cavernous hollow tree deep within the reaches of the place. Away from the Ghru, away the Watchdogs of Farron, away from any bothers really. The only company Antares had were curious little crabs and the quietly rotting corpses of the Mushroom People. With a sigh, they then retreated into the hollow and sat back against the incline of moss inside.

And slept.

They somehow slept for weeks at first and upon awakening, they found that small plants and bits of moss had begun growing on their body and armor. With a shrug, though, the knight wandered out to check on friends in the new Age of Dark. The plants and moss were eventually removed from their armor per the insistence of their friends.

Inevitably, Antares found themselves tired again. They returned to their little hollow and slept once more, though this time for months. When the knight woke then, they were covered in even more plants… Getting up was a little painful, but they left to visit their friends anyway. Stubbornly this time, they refused to remove their plants once they returned from Farron Keep. They found that the little moss clumps and flowers growing on them helped the knight remember Darkroot Garden as it once was, both in the waking world and their dreams.

~~~~~~~

It was hard to tell when the wandering, or formerly wandering, Knight Antares would pay a visit to Lothric Castle. They disappeared for months, baffling and worrying their friends when they claimed they were only “going back to sleep for a little while.” Some of their closest friends knew that the knight went back to Farron Keep during their absences though. More specifically, the spot where the Mushroom People once dwelled and then became extinct because they couldn’t survive the toxins of the swamp.

Indeed, travelers could find Antares here, nestled within the cavern of a hollow tree. They were covered in plants and moss, which slowly grew into and replaced their limbs over time. So... the time between visits eventually grew longer and longer until the visits completely stopped. Now, the Guardian’s Hollow (what the tree had come to be called) and a small surrounding area were the only places where the swamp sludge had ceased spreading its toxins. It was the final resting place of a knight who had decided their duties were finally done.


End file.
